By Rupert Howell
Meeting  twice in one week, North Panola School trustees learned from school principals their plans for the 2016-17 school year on Monday night during a special meeting and discussed usual monthly business during their Thursday, July 28 regular meeting.
Items discussed included Trustee Pat Lamar asking if trustees shouldn’t curtail travel prior to board approval of authorization for board members to attend conferences in Washington, D.C., Denver, and Hot Springs, Ark.
Board President Chris Fairlee explained approval did not mean all trustees were expected to attend, but any member could if the need arose.
Superintendent Cedric Richardson entered the conversation stating, “It’s good to have a least one representative from North Panola on the national level.”
The vote for potential travel was unanimous.
Trustees stuck to their policy of no student transfers out of the district and voted unanimously to deny the requests of parents to release students from North Panola District.
Board members were also presented certificates of completion of board development training, a board policy requiring them to complete so many hours of training.
Financial reports approved included $377,366.92 in district maintenance, special education and federal program funds and $9,521.15 in food service funds.
Superintendent Richardson reported that most positions were filled for the coming school year with the exception of two or three last minute vacancies.
During the comment period, local political activist Julius Harris told trustees and administrators that he was aware of school workers at North Panola working in “severe hot conditions at one of the schools.”
Harris also complained that a school that could send football players to Alabama to camp should also be able to hire an art teacher.
In the agenda packet, donations were noted of three televisions by Antonio Barragan to the football team’s locker room. Another monetary donation from NP alumnus Craig Shideler was among those listed. Shideler said afterward alumni and friends are pushing for volunteer support for Coach Carl Diffy and the North Panola football team and are sponsoring a fish fry later this month in support of their hard work.